The Mystery of the Sea [Import] [Hardcover]

Bram Stoker (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Buccaneer Books Inc; Reprint edition (December 31, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568495161
• ISBN-13: 978-1568495163
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,593,072 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Stoker creates a thrilling mystery of political intrigue., June 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Mystery of the Sea (Pocket Classics) (Paperback)

For fans of Bram Stoker this is an excellent mystery. The reader is transported back to Aberdeen, Scotland after the destruction of the American battle ship the "Maine." Here the reader is witness to a consuming mystery involving the supernatural and a world in political upheavel. As usual Stoker's character's shine, particularly the heroine Marjorey. This tell of supernaturarl intrigue will keep you entralled and eager to read more of this wonderful and underappreciated author's work.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good example of Stoker's work, with some of his most memorable characters., April 2, 2009

By 

C. T. Hunter "chips_books" (Gainesville, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Mystery of the Sea (Valancourt Classics) (Paperback)

THE MYSTERY OF THE SEA (1902) is a combination adventure, romance, mystery, and fantasy. It is an exciting and engaging story, and is a great example of the quality and power of Stoker's writing. While at times gets somewhat bogged down in peripheral details, it is still one of my favorite overlooked classics.

Wonderful characters, including Archie Hunter, Marjory Drake, and Gormala, carry this story. They demand your attention and your admiration, and you can't help but to get involved in their story as they go through the adventure of a lifetime. Marjory and Archie's developing love is subtle but powerful, as the two timid individuals turn into a powerful couple. Archie's obsession with Marjory is realistically portrayed and watching his emotional roller-coaster as he wins her love makes for great reading. Their adventures together to find lost treasure and defeat the evil kidnappers are well told and just plain enjoyable to read.

One of the things Stoker is most well-known for is his ability to bring his settings to life with history and local color. This novel demonstrates this ability wonderfully. Taking place on the shores of Scotland during the Spanish American War, THE MYSTERY OF THE SEA is really able to get the reader involved with detailed descriptions of landscapes, climate, local accents, and customs. The political intrigue found here is asumedly an accurate portrayal of the times, with hostilities high between the various powers of the world. One thing that you do not get here is a dose of Stoker's otherwise frequent sexism. While Marjory might not be a 'New Woman' in the strictest sense, she certainly displays many admirable traits such as courage, independence, intelligence, and strength. Besides the obvious Dracula, she might be my favorite character in all Stoker's work.

My only real complaint about this book is the remarkable absence of Archie's fantastic ability of 'second-sight' for the middle 5/6 of the book. While I enjoy reading about decoding bilateral ciphers and about the characters' developing love, I really got drawn in by the mysterious powers displayed in the beginning of the book, and found myself missing the unknown for much of the middle part. Luckily, it all comes back towards the ending for an incredibly exciting finish.

Recommended for fans of Stoker and fans of well-written adventure/romance/mystery/fantasy.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "The Mystery of the Sea" by Bram Stoker, December 19, 2008

By 

Mike "TracyReaderDad" (Tracy, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mystery of the Sea (Valancourt Classics) (Paperback)

Archibald Hunter was spending his annual vacation in Cruden Bay, Scotland when he sees two women and a man walking abreast. Suddenly, he has a vision of the man carrying a coffin and the two women walking behind. Just as suddenly, he sees the three walking normal again. Very odd.

As this was happening, Archie was being watched by an old woman, Gormala. She had seen Archie's shocked look at what he had just seen and tells him that he has the gift (if you can call it that) of "Second Sight". This means he can see the future, and that the next day he will find out what his vision meant.

Sure enough, the next day Archie finds out that the child of two of the adults he saw walking had drowned. A series of "Second Sight" visions follow including the death of an accomplished seaman by drowning in the often rough Cruden Bay near the rock formations known as the Skares and the vision of a procession of ghosts spanning hundreds of years of seaman who have drowned in the Skares. At the end of this procession is the latest victim who Archie is presently carrying to Whinnyfold after failing to save him. His death was predetermined, and no one could have saved him. As Gormala states: "Am I to wark against the Fates when They have spoken! The Dead are dead indeed when the Voice has whispered in their ears".

Archie loves the area around Cruden Bay and is building a house on the cliff overlooking the Skares. One day, he spots two women in trouble and he rushes in to save them. One woman, the younger of the two, ends up being Archie's love, Marjory Drake. Marjory is an American on the run from a Spanish group (the story takes place during the Spanish American War and Marjory, a rich heiress who greatly helped the U.S. fight the war against Spain).

To help furnish his new house, Archie purchases an old oak chest from an auctioneer. In this chest are very old, yellowed, papers written in an odd cipher code. Being curious, Archie--and later Marjory--undertake the task of deciphering the code. Once they do, they find that it leads to a treasure buried in the area over 300 years ago by the Spanish Armada.

Archie and Marjory embark on an effort to find this treasure and along the way experience the adventure of a lifetime, and find that true love conquers all.

"The Mystery of the Sea" is a terrific book written by a true master. It may not reach the heights of "Dracula" (which I give 5 WaterTowers), but, it is a wonderful adventure mystery mixing information about ciphers and codes, romance, and the supernatural.